Connect with us

News

Tour Rundown: Mickelson’s 5th, Vic Open times 2, Taylor and Langer, too

Published

on

This week in February is an important one. Seven days after a controversial tournament on the European Tour, that circuit and the LPGA meet in Australia, at the Vic Open. What’s different? Instead of dancing around societal issues, the Vic Open explodes them by offering equal pay to both genders. Professional golf can work to improve our world, it appears. The PGA Tour returned to the worst-timed event on the schedule, where rain and hail and worse arrive to frustrate golfers. Somehow, the tournament went off and concluded as planned. The Web.Com tour pegged balls in Panama, while the Champions tour found a home in south Florida. For a complete tour rundown, you’ve come to the proper place. Let’s have a look.

PGA Tour: AT&T goes to Mickelson for 5th time

Say what you will about horses for courses, but Phil Mickelson has quietly made the Monterey peninsula his playground. Mickelson unexpectedly claimed victory this week at Pebble Beach, despite entering the final round 3 shots in arrears. Paul Casey looked to all the world a champion, especially after his play over the first three days. The clue to his Sunday struggles was a 1st-round 69 at Pebble. He played the host course worst of all, finishing a mere 4-under over 2 days, after decimating Spyglass and MPCC with 64-67. Mickelson, in contrast, was 9 under at the site of the 2019 US Open, a 5-shot differential which created his winning margin of 3 shots. Lefty had to work overtime, given the rain delay of Sunday, but his final shots on the 18th hole were his strong suit, and a 44th career win on tour was his.

Dare we hope that Mickelson might finally win that US Open? Of course we dare, but we know the likelihood. Still …

LPGA: Celine Boutier overcomes leaders to claim Vic Open title

Kim Kaufman was reminded how difficult it is to win a golf tournament. Solid after 36 holes (132), she went 153 over the next 36 to drop to a tie for 8th. France’s Celine Boutier played 4 consistent rounds between 69 and 72, and held off hometown hero Sarah Kemp’s Sunday 65 by 2 shots, for her first professional victory. After opening with a double, Kemp was magnificent over the remaining holes. She notched 9 birdies, including 5 consecutive on the front nine, to throw a scare into Boutier. The champion was not to be denied, and balanced birdies, bogeys and pars throughout, as she held off Kemp and Su Oh, also of Australia. Oh’s round-one ace propelled her toward a tie for second with Kemp at -6, 2 behind the victor.

European Tour: Vic Open trophy now owned by David Law

Wade Ormsby might feel that the Vic Open owes him one. On his way home on Sunday, he clattered a delightful approach off the flagstick, turning a short birdie putt into a cross-country effort. It’s certain that David Law took matters into his own hands. Faced with a deficit as he entered the closing stretch, Law turned dreams into reality with a birdie-par-eagle finish, making up a handful of strokes on the leader. He signed for -18, then observed both Ormsby and Brad Kennedy bogey the par-3 17th. Kennedy needed birdie at the last to tie, but made par. Ormsby needed eagle, but could only summon birdie. The pair tied for 2nd, one shot out of a playoff. For Law, the Vic was his first European Tour title, after 6 wins in developmental events.

Web.Com Tour: Panama Championship

It was an awfully big ask of Ben Taylor to take the lead on Friday afternoon, and hold it through Sunday. He made it to Saturday evening, but the birdies stopped coming of day foir. The Englishman placed 4th at 5-under par. China’s Carl Yuan achieved notoriety by playing all 4 rounds in the 60s this week, the only member of the field to sub 70 each day. It was good for solo 3rd into 10th on the money list. His countryman, Xinjung Zhang went low on day 4 with 66, and was nearly perfect. His single bogey, at the 15th, was the arrow that kept him from a playoff for the title. Zhang moved from 75th to 7th on The 25 list, one shot behind Michael Gligic of Canada. Gligic, the 2018 PGA Tour Canada list leader, tossed one more birdie than Zhang on Sunday, and his 3 at the 16th proved to be the deciding blow. Gligic won his first Web title at -8, and all the way to 2nd on the money list, $20K shy of leader Mark Anderson.

PGA Tour Champions: Oasis Championship

Heard a new joke today: this German guy walks up to the tee … and wins the tournament. No punch line. For the 13th consecutive calendar year, the 2-time Masters champion won on the over-50 circuit. He didn’t sneak in, either. Langer signed for 65 day three, after opening with 64-68, for a 5-shot margin of victory over Marco Dawson. Each round of the week was unique for the Teutonic tormentor. On day one, Langer posted 8 birdies and 10 pars. Day two surrendered just one birdie, but two eagles countered his only bogey of the week. On day the third, Bernhard the unbeatable had 7 birdies against 11 pars, to reach his 19-under total.

Your Reaction?
  • 6
  • LEGIT1
  • WOW0
  • LOL0
  • IDHT1
  • FLOP1
  • OB0
  • SHANK1

Ronald Montesano writes for GolfWRX.com from western New York. He dabbles in coaching golf and teaching Spanish, in addition to scribbling columns on all aspects of golf, from apparel to architecture, from equipment to travel. Follow Ronald on Twitter at @buffalogolfer.

Click to comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

News

Morning 9: Wyndham Clark on back injury | DiMarco’s bold Champions Tour take | Houston Open photos

Published

on

By Ben Alberstadt with Gianni Magliocco.

For comments: [email protected]

Good Thursday morning, golf fans, as day one of the Houston Open gets underway.

1. Wyndham Clark hurts back…still hopes to play

ESPN’s Mark Schlabach…”Reigning U.S. Open winner Wyndham Clark injured his back while working out at home Monday, but he hopes to play in this week’s Texas Children’s Houston Open, which starts Thursday at Memorial Park Golf Course.”

  • “Clark, the fourth-ranked golfer in the world, said he was lifting weights and “got caught in an awkward spot doing a lift and [his] back went.”
  • “It’s not something that happens regularly, but it happened and you live and you learn,” Clark said. “I’m trending in the right direction. I’m hitting it or feeling stronger and more mobile every day. I’m going to give it my best effort tomorrow and hopefully I can play and compete. If not, I’ve got to get ready for tournaments to come after this.”
Full piece.

2. DiMarco’s bold Champions Tour take

Our Matt Vincenzi…”While speaking on the Subpar podcast, former PGA Tour winner and current PGA Tour Champions player Chris DiMarco said he hopes LIV buys the Champions Tour.”

  • “We’re kind of hoping that LIV buys the Champions Tour,” he said.
  • “Let’s play for a little real money out here. I mean this is kind of a joke when we’re getting $2 million. There were like seven guys last week from TPC (Sawgrass, at the $25 million PLAYERS Championship) that made more money than our purses.”
Full piece.

3. Charley Hull’s course management problem?

Our Matt Vincenzi…”Charley Hull came just short of her third LPGA Tour victory over the weekend at the Fir Hills Seri Pak Championship when she played her last two holes at 3 over to slip all the way to 10th on the leaderboard.”

  • “After the round, Hull was blasted by Sky Sports commentator and former LPGA Tour player Trish Johnson for her lack of golf course management.”
  • “While speaking on the Sky Sports Golf podcast, Johnson spoke harshly of Hull.”
  • “I’m probably her harshest critic, because I know how good she is. She doesn’t win anywhere near enough for her talent, and she doesn’t get involved enough, in all honestly.
  • “The thing with Charley is that you’re never going to change her. I read something the other day that said how much she loves the game and it’s her love of the game [that costs her]. She’s never going to change and she’s just going to go for every pin.
  • “In theory that’s great, but it won’t win you golf tournaments, it just won’t because she’s not that much better than anybody else.
Full piece.

4. Sahith’s interesting idea

Golf Channel’s Brentley Romine…”Which brings Theegala to his big idea: “There’s got to be something, like a fan challenge or – I think it would be awesome to see a scratch handicap go out and play like the Monday after a tournament, keep the same conditions and see what they would shoot just to put it into perspective how hard a PGA Tour golf course is.”

  • “Theegala loves the thought so much that he’d even come out and watch.”
  • “Shoot, I’d commentate on it,” Theegala added before continuing, “I have a pet peeve, sometimes when I watch golf on TV, a great example is hole 8 at Valspar last week. It’s a 230-yard par 3, the green’s 12 yards wide and someone will hit the middle of the green and, you know, they’ll be like, ‘Oh, really smart shot there.’ I’m like, ‘Well, no, he’s absolutely laced this 4-iron in the middle of the green, that’s right where he’s looking and to hit a 4-iron that straight is really, really hard.’ … Even like chipping, a lot of the stuff just looks flat on TV, but then when you get over the chip, like, oh, great, I have to land it over a mound on a downslope down grain?”
Full piece.

5. Top am Rachel Heck not going pro

Golf Channel’s Brentley Romine…”As Rachel Heck nears the end of her college golf career, she has decided that the LPGA isn’t for her.’

  • “Heck, the 22-year-old Stanford senior who won an NCAA individual title as a freshman and has climbed as high as second in the world amateur rankings, penned a first-person essay for No Laying Up in which she explained her reasoning for remaining amateur after graduation this summer and starting an internship not in professional golf but rather private equity. Heck, a political science major, also will be pinned as a lieutenant in the U.S. Air Force.”

Read her piece on No Laying Up: https://nolayingup.com/blog/why-im-remaining-an-amateur

Full piece.

6. DJ’s new LIV signing

Golf Monthly’s Elliott Heath…”Dustin Johnson‘s LIV Golf team 4Aces GC has announced former TravisMathew CEO Chris Rosaasen as the side’s new General Manager.”

  • “Rosaasen, who is a long-time friend of Johnson, is also the founder of the team’s apparel sponsor Extracurricular and has been CEO of the Omniverse Group for the past four years.
  • “He joins with more than 20 years of “brand-building, marketing, and business leadership” according to LIV Golf, which says his “record of innovation in the golf industry will strengthen and accelerate the growth of the 4Aces GC brand.”
Full piece.

7. Photos from the Houston Open

  • Check out all of our photos from this week’s event!
Full piece.
Your Reaction?
  • 0
  • LEGIT1
  • WOW0
  • LOL0
  • IDHT0
  • FLOP0
  • OB0
  • SHANK0

Continue Reading

News

Four books for a springtime review

Published

on

One thing that never changes over time: snowy evenings give purpose to reading (is it the other way around?) It has been a snowy 2024 in western New York, and I’ve had ample time to tuck into an easy chair with a blanket, coffee, and a book. You’re in luck, because despite the title of this piece, I’ll share five books and their worth with you.

There is great breadth of subject matter from one to five. Golf is as complicated as life, which means that the cover of the book isn’t worth judging. The contents begin the tale, but there is so much more to each topic presented within. If you’re like me, your library grows each year. Despite the value of the virtual, the paper-printed word connects us to the past of golf and humanity. Here’s hoping that you’ll add one or more of these titles to your collection.

        

Rainmaker

Hughes Norton interviewed with Mark McCormack for 20 minutes (30 if you count the missed exit at Logan International) while driving the founder of IMG from Harvard to the airport. The lesson of taking advantage of each moment, of every dollar, because you might not get another opportunity, is the most valuable one that life offers. I say to you, be certain to read this book, because another opportunity to bend the ear of Hughes Norton may not come our way.

Hughes Norton was with Tiger Woods for waaayyy fewer years than you might guess, but they were the critical ones. Be warned: not all of the revelations in this tome are for the faint of heart. Some, in fact, will break your heart. Golf was a sleepy hamlet in the 1990s, until the 16-lane interstate called Eldrick “Tiger” Woods came into town. Everything changed, which meant that everything would change again and again, into eternity. Once the ball starts rolling, it’s impossible to stop.

My favorite aspect of this book is its candor. Hughes Norton is well into his time on Planet Earth. He has no reason to hold back, and he doesn’t. My least favorite aspect is that George Peper got the call to co-author the book (and I didn’t.) Seriously, there is no LFA for me, so this is the best that I could do.

Decision: Buy It!

The Golf Courses of Seth Raynor

Michael Wolf, James Sitar, and Jon Cavalier, in abject partnership, collaborated to produce a handsome volume on the work of gone-too-soon, engineer-turned-golf course architect. Seth Raynor was pulled into the game by Charles Blair MacDonald, the crusty godfather of American golf. Raynor played little golf across the 51 years of his life. His reason? He did not wish to corrupt his designs with the demands and failings of his own game.

Jon Cavalier began his photography career as a contributor to the Golf Club Atlas discussion group. I met him there in a virtual way (we still have yet to shake hands) and have exchanged numerous emails over the years. Despite the demands of his day job, Cavalier has blossomed into the most traveled and prolific course photographer alive today. His photography, both hand-held and drone, makes the pages pop. Michael Wolf invited me and two friends to play his home course, despite having never met any of us in person. His words, melded to those of James Sitar, are the glue that connect Cavalier’s photos.

My favorite aspect of the books is the access it gives to the private-club world of Raynor. Fewer than five of his courses are resort or public access, and knowing people on the inside is not available to all. My suggestion? Write a letter/email and see if a club will let you play. Can’t hurt to try! My one complaint about the book is its horizontal nature. Golf is wide, but I like a little vertical in my photos. It’s not much of a complaint, given the glorious contents within the covers.

Decision: Buy It!!

Big Green Book from The Golfer’s Journal

Beginning with its (over)size, and continuing through the entire contents, there is no descriptor that defines the genre of the Big Green Book. It is photography, essay, layout, poetry, graphics, and stream of consciousness. It harnesses the creative power of a lengthy masthead of today’s finest golf contributors. Quotes from Harvey Penick, verse from Billy Collins, and prose from John Updike partner with images pure and altered, to immerse you in the diverse golf spaces that define this planet.

One of my favorite aspects is the spaces between the words and photos. Have your friends and others write a few notes to you in those blank areas, to personalize your volume even more. One aspect that needs improvement: the lack of female voices. I suspect that will be remedied in future volumes.

Decision: Buy It!!!

Troublemaker and The Unplayable Lie

Books that allege discrimination and mistreatment check two boxes: potentially-salacious reads and debate over whose perspective is accurate. In the end, the presentation of salacious revelation rarely meets the expectation, and the debate over fault is seldom resolved. Lisa Cornwell spent years as a competitive junior and college golfer, before joining The Golf Channel as a reporter and program host.

Despite the dream assignments, there were clouds that covered the sun. Cornwell documents episodes of favoritism and descrimination against her, prior to her departure from The Golf Channel in 2021. Her work echoes the production of the late Marcia Chambers, who wrote for Golf Digest in the 1980s and 1990s. Chambers took issue with many of the potential and real legal issues surrounding golf and its policies of access/no access. Her research culminated in The Unplayable Lie, the first work of its kind to address issues confronted by all genders and ethnicities, and immediately predated the professional debut of Tiger Woods in 1997.

My favorite aspects of the two works, are the courage and conviction that it took to write them, and believe in them. My least favorite aspects are the consistent bias that many groups continue to face. Without awareness, there is no action. Without action, there is no change.

Decision: Buy Them!!!!

Your Reaction?
  • 4
  • LEGIT1
  • WOW0
  • LOL1
  • IDHT1
  • FLOP0
  • OB0
  • SHANK3

Continue Reading

Tour Photo Galleries

Photos from the 2024 Texas Children’s Houston Open

Published

on

GolfWRX is on site in the Lone Star State this week for the Texas Children’s Houston Open.

General galleries from the putting green and range, WITBs — including Thorbjorn Olesen and Zac Blair — and several pull-out albums await.

As always, we’ll continue to update as more photos flow in. Check out links to all our photos from Houston below.

General Albums

WITB Albums

Pullout Albums

See what GolfWRXers are saying in the forums.

Your Reaction?
  • 19
  • LEGIT5
  • WOW2
  • LOL4
  • IDHT0
  • FLOP1
  • OB0
  • SHANK0

Continue Reading

WITB

Facebook

Trending